OFCCP: Ask the Experts

OFCCP Ask the Experts

OFFICE OF FEDERAL CONTRACT COMPLIANCE PROGRAMS

Ask the Experts is an online forum where federal contractors and subcontractors are invited to submit questions to industry experts related to OFCCP compliance, affirmative action planning, and equal employment opportunity. Simply register your company on LocalJobNetwork.com to submit a question.

Hello, Does the OFCCP or other entity require specific naming conventions when it comes to race or ethnicity in our HCM/people management system? We are curious to know what is recommended or required when it comes to names.

OFCCP doesn't have specific naming conventions in its regulations regarding race and ethnicity that federal contractors and subcontractors are required to use. However, OFCCP uses the following terms in its regulations in regard to race and ethnicity and expect employers to collect demographic data according to these categories:

Note that unlike EEOC, OFCCP's regulations do NOT have a separate category for Hawaiian Natives/Pacific Islanders and do NOT have a category for persons who are two or more races. OFCCP issued a directive in 2008 that allows federal contractors and subcontractors to collect demographic data and prepare statistical reports using EEOC's race and ethnicity classifications, but OFCCP has never formally changed its regulations to match EEOC's classifications.

From our experience, OFCCP has not had a problem when federal contractors or subcontractors use naming conventions for the categories above that appropriately represent the category. Thus, it should not be a problem to have an HR system that refers to "African Americans" rather than "Blacks" or that refers to "Native Americans" rather than "American Indians/Alaskan Natives."

Where OFCCP might have a problem is if your system creates new or different categories than the five categories used by OFCCP or the seven categories used by EEOC. For example, if your system has a category for Asians from the Indian Subcontinent, a separate category for Asian for the the Eastern part of Asian, and a third category for Hawaiian Natives/Pacific Islanders, OFCCP might have a problem as it recognizes these first two categories as members of one class for reporting purposes. As another example, if your system has a category for Asians from the Middle East who are counted as minorities in various reports, OFCCP might have a problem since Asians from the Middle East are typically counted as white.

Thus, the naming conventions you use are less important than have categories that conform to OFCCP's expectations.

Export Contacts?

Asked by Kimberly W. - Jan 30, 2018

Hello, is there a way to export a list of diversity organizations to an excel file?

LocalJobNetwork.com partners with over 15,000 community-based organizations nationwide. While there is not a way for employers to export the entire list of organizations, employers who are using LocalJobNetwork.com's solutions are able to run a Community and Diversity Outreach Report and export this to Excel. This report would be more relevant as it will list the organizations that the employer's jobs were sent out to, as well as the contact information for these organizations, giving employers the ability to follow up with them individually. If you need assistance in generating these reports, please give us a call and we'd be happy to assist you.

EEO Policy

Asked by Anonymous - Jan 11, 2018

Is it standard practice to list the contact number for the executive who administers the affirmative action program? We have it listed, but is it a requirement?

It is not required to have phone number listed in the AAP for the individual that administers the plan. There are pros and cons regarding whether to include or exclude a contact number. For example, some companies want to direct any questions about the AAP, including questions from the OFCCP, to a particular person who can best answer questions. Others may not want to provide any more information than is required.

There is nothing in the regulations that the OFCCP enforces that would prohibit a company from posting a job with no intent to hire. However, there could certainly be other laws or regulations that impact such a situation.

Excluding EEs & Effect on Establishment Size

Asked by Anonymous - Jan 09, 2018

When employees are excluded from one AAP to another, does the establishment's size change? For example:

100 employees are located at Location A.

52 employees are located at Location B. 5 employees report to managers at Location A and are excluded to that plan.

Do the exclusions effectively reduce the size of Location B to 47 employees? Can both locations be rolled up into a single AAP or are separate AAPs required?

The regulations do not require a certain number of employees or a certain distance between locations for AAPs. The plans are done by "establishment," but this word is not defined in the regulations. In your example, assuming that all of the employees work for the same company, it really depends on a number of factors whether you would want one or more plans. It depends on the demographics, location, types of jobs and perhaps some strategic factors. Because less than 50 employees are at another location does not mean that these employees are not included in a plan. A company can have an AAP with less than 50 employees at a certain location. Hope this helps, Lisa

Federal Contractor and Temp Agency Relationships

Asked by Lisa G. - Jan 09, 2018

In contracting with a temp agency, what are a federal contractor's responsibilities in relation to OFCCP?

The regulations specifically address this very common concern. In short, the temp agency is like an extension of the company for compliance purposes. Using a third party staffing agency does not exempt a company from the regulations enforced by OFCCP (Sec. 60-3.10). Thus, all the requirements under the regulations still apply, such as posting, listing, outreach, compliant selection procedures, and adverse impact analyses. The text of the regulation is below. Hope this helps. Lisa

Sec. 60-3.10 Employment agencies and employment services.

A. Where selection procedures are devised by agency. An employment agency, including private employment agencies and State employment agencies, which agrees to a request by an employer or labor organization to devise and utilize a selection procedure should follow the standards in these guidelines for determining adverse impact. If adverse impact exists the agency should comply with these guidelines. An employment agency is not relieved of its obligation herein because the user did not request such validation or has requested the use of some lesser standard of validation than is provided in these guidelines. The use of an employment agency does not relieve an employer or labor organization or other user of its responsibilities under Federal law to provide equal employment opportunity or its obligations as a user under these guidelines.

B. Where selection procedures are devised elsewhere. Where an employment agency or service is requested to administer a selection procedure which has been devised elsewhere and to make referrals pursuant to the results, the employment agency or service should maintain and have available evidence of the impact of the selection and referral procedures which it administers. If adverse impact results the agency or service should comply with these guidelines. If the agency or service seeks to comply with these guidelines by reliance upon validity studies or other data in the possession of the employer, it should obtain and have available such information.

This forum provides information of a general nature. None of the answers or information provided is intended as legal advice or opinion relative to specific matters, facts, situations, or issues. Additional facts and information or future developments may affect the subjects addressed. You should consult with an attorney about your specific circumstance before acting on any of this information since it may not be applicable to your situation. The Local JobNetwork™ and all experts expressly disclaim all liability with respect to actions taken or not taken based on any or all of the contents of this forum.